Performance issues with external hard drives (PC)

[blitzkrieg]

Okay, so, I am on my third external hard drive that I have used regularly and two out of the three of the hard drives have had 'issues'.

Allow me to explain...

My first, external hard drive had no issues at all and the only reason I upgraded was for more space (terabytes, in my individual case).

The second hard drive that I upgraded to had a habit of dropping its connection very frequently, where it would disconnect and disappear from Windows Explorer such as on My Computer and would be inaccessible during this time, until it reconnected. I tried replacing cables and such, but nothing improved. Unlucky I thought - so I bought a different one from a different brand.

The third hard drive, the one that I am using, which now has even more terabytes than the two previous, has already made Windows Explorer crash, forcing me to reboot Windows, and when downloading video games has the occasional 'disk write error' (according to Steam, after reserving space for a game on the hard drive).

Is it normal to have frequent issues like those of this nature, with external hard drives whilst running Windows (Windows 10 and 11 specifically)?

I just want a smooth experience with these things, but that seems to be asking too much, as of late.

 

[Jonn]

I tried replacing cables and such, but nothing improved.

Have you considered the port of your computer may be the problem?
Have you tried connecting to another USB port?

 

[blitzkrieg]

Have you considered the port of your computer may be the problem?
Have you tried connecting to another USB port

Yes, I had tried that. Besides, two out of the three external hard drives have had no issue with disconnecting/reconnecting, so I doubt that that is a general issue.

 

[Judge]

When you purchased each drive, did you formally configure and format them yourself? Or simply use them "as is"?

Are these external drives always showing their drive letters in the file explorer?

Did you check within your computer's BIOS to make sure it is configured to recognize external USB drives?

In the Windows Device Manager, does it always show the USB drive to be enabled within the disk drives section?

You might also refer to something like this for an overall diagnosis of such a problem:

How to fix hard drive not showing in Windows 10 File Explorer

How to Fix a Steam Disk Write Error

 

[blitzkrieg]

When you purchased each drive, did you formally configure and format them yourself? Or simply use them "as is"?

Are these external drives always showing their drive letters in the file explorer?

Did you check within your computer's BIOS to make sure it is configured to recognize external USB drives?

In the Windows Device Manager, does it always show the USB drive to be enabled within the disk drives section?

You might also refer to something like this for an overall diagnosis of such a problem:

How to fix hard drive not showing in Windows 10 File Explorer

I used them 'as is'. What type of configuration is needed for an external hard drive? I had assumed they were 'plug and play'?

Yes, the drives have always showed their drive letter in the file explorer, aside from the second hard drive, which when temporarily disconnected, as it often would do itself, would also disappear along with its drive letter in file explorer.

No, I haven't checked BIOS, I assume that if it wasn't set up to handle external hard drives - they wouldn't connect or work at all in the first place? And all of mine have worked, they just have performance issues.

Yes, device manager shows everything is fine.

 

[Judge]

I used them 'as is'. What type of configuration is needed for an external hard drive? I had assumed they were 'plug and play'?

Yes, the drives have always showed their drive letter in the file explorer, aside from the second hard drive, which when temporarily disconnected, as it often would do itself, would also disappear along with its drive letter in file explorer.

No, I haven't checked BIOS, I assume that if it wasn't set up to handle external hard drives - they wouldn't connect or work at all in the first place? And all of mine have worked, they just have performance issues.

Yes, device manager shows everything is fine.

Theoretically Windows 10 should be able to automatically configure and set up such a drive.

Though in this instance, you should probably do it manually just to rule out problems at the outset. Using a "raw" USB drive, that may be why each drive keeps malfunctioning.

Does the drive presently show up as an NTFS drive in the file explorer? Or is it formatted with FAT32 or EXFAT? If it came formatted as a FAT32, you might consider reformatting it to NTFS, just like your primary drive.

Refer to this guide to properly format (using NTFS) and partition the drive. Also, go into your BIOS/UEFI just to make sure it actually detects the connected drive.

How to fix hard drive not showing in Windows 10 File Explorer

 

[blitzkrieg]

Theoretically Windows 10 should be able to automatically configure and set up such a drive.

Though in this instance, you should probably do it manually just to rule out problems at the outset. Using a "raw" USB drive, that may be why each drive keeps malfunctioning.

Does the drive presently show up as an NTFS drive in the file explorer? Or is it formatted with FAT32 or EXFAT? If it came formatted as a FAT32, you might consider reformatting it to NTFS, just like your primary drive.

Refer to this guide to properly format (using NTFS) and partition the drive. Also, go into your BIOS/UEFI just to make sure it actually detects the connected drive.

How to fix hard drive not showing in Windows 10 File Explorer

The drive came formatted as exFAT.

I have already started using the drive and it would be time consuming to format it and start over again.

Are there any disadvantages to using exFAT?

 

[Judge]

The drive came formatted as exFAT.

I have already started using the drive and it would be time consuming to format it and start over again.

Are there any disadvantages to using exFAT?

Sounds like it may well be your problem, probably relative to individual applications more than Windows itself. However you'll still find articles like this, recommending to stick with NTFS partitions with external hard drives if you're using exclusively Microsoft Windows.

"The reason it’s the default file system for drives that run the OS is that it has all the technology Microsoft has on tap these days : journaling, no reasonable file size limitations; support for file compression and long file names; file access control for server administrators, and lots more.

In a Windows-only household there’s no reason for you not to use NTFS on all your drives, both removable and internal."

No secret that Microsoft is notoriously proprietary when it comes to their products. Archiving data shouldn't matter. However I'd be reticent to use anything but NTFS when it comes to drives with the OS on them, or complete applications that function based on an OS on the primary drive.

Why your USB drive’s file format matters: FAT32 vs. exFAT vs. NTFS

 

[Jonn]

I used them 'as is'. What type of configuration is needed for an external hard drive? I had assumed they were 'plug and play'?

Are you using an old computer?

Spoiler: joke

A Commodore 64, for example?

I always use "as is", and have never had a problem.

 

[Judge]

Are you using an old computer?

Spoiler: joke

A Commodore 64, for example?

I always use "as is", and have never had a problem.

That may depend on how your computer is formatting those drives. Do you have partitions formatted with exFat or NTFS?

Which reminds me, he should still investigate his BIOS/UEFI settings to make sure they recognize external drives. A very different consideration from how the drive may be formatted and partitioned.

My other 13-year old computer runs exclusively on Linux, formatted with exFAT. Runs Mint 22.0 just fine.

 

[Jonn]

The drive came formatted as exFAT.

I have already started using the drive and it would be time consuming to format it and start over again.

Are there any disadvantages to using exFAT?

Do you have a second computer, or have access to one?
The implication of my comment is, you might need a new one.
I have multiple computers, partly as insurance if one breaks down.

The problem doesn't seem to be the hard drives, assuming they are new and bought from a reputable dealership.

 

[blitzkrieg]

Do you have a second computer, or have access to one?
The implication of my comment is, you might need a new one.
I have multiple computers, partly as insurance if one breaks down.

The problem doesn't seem to be the hard drives, assuming they are new and bought from a reputable dealership.

Both of the hard drives had different issues entirely, which makes me think that they are the issue rather than the computer I am running.

The computer I am running has several other USB devices attached which work just fine.

The hard drive I am using works 99% of the time, but inexplicably it seems to cause problems a minority of the time.

The hard drive before that which I had, had a chronic issue with disconnecting/reconnecting itself and that problem was present from the beginning of using it (it was bought refurbished so it may have been a dud)?

The hard drive I am using now was bought new and does not reconnect/disconnect as the old one did, but has had a few hiccups in the first week of using it.

The computer (laptop) I am using was bought a few years ago when new, but perhaps you are right and that may be the problem - I will only know when I get a new one (which I am not planning to do just yet).

 

[Judge]

Both of the hard drives had different issues entirely, which makes me think that they are the issue rather than the computer I am running.

The computer I am running has several other USB devices attached which work just fine.

The hard drive I am using works 99% of the time, but inexplicably it seems to cause problems a minority of the time.

The hard drive before that which I had, had a chronic issue with disconnecting/reconnecting itself and that problem was present from the beginning of using it (it was bought refurbished so it may have been a dud)?

The hard drive I am using now was bought new and does not reconnect/disconnect as the old one did, but has had a few hiccups in the first week of using it.

The computer (laptop) I am using was bought a few years ago when new, but perhaps you are right and that may be the problem - I will only know when I get a new one (which I am not planning to do just yet).

Do you use those external drives to simply archive data, or use programs that depend on the OS on your primary drive?

Archiving data won't matter with regard to how the drive is formatted. However if it interacts with an NTFS partitioned OS, it may be periodically corrupting data. And if all the external drives are formatted with exFAT, it may be your problem. That the drives are fine, but they just need to be reformatted.

 

[Jonn]

The hard drive before that which I had, had a chronic issue with disconnecting/reconnecting itself and that problem was present from the beginning of using it (it was bought refurbished so it may have been a dud)?

My ex-girlfriend had a problem with a USB hub.
It took forever to find out that was the problem.
Do you use one?

 

[blitzkrieg]

Do you use those external drives to simply archive data, or use programs that depend on the OS on your primary drive?

Archiving data won't matter with regard to how the drive is formatted. However if it interacts with an NTFS partitioned OS, it may be periodically corrupting data. And if all the external drives are formatted with exFAT, it may be your problem. That the drives are fine, but they just need to be reformatted.

I am using the external drive for archiving purposes, primarily.

 

[blitzkrieg]

My ex-girlfriend had a problem with a USB hub.
It took forever to find out that was the problem.
Do you use one?

I do, but I use the external hard drive with the USB ports built into my laptop, not the hub for those, although I have tried both ways in the past.

 

[Jonn]

I am using the external drive for archiving purposes, primarily.

Hmmm.
I only ever use my external HDs for archiving porpoises purposes.
Maybe that is why I have never had a problem like what is being describe, here.

 

[Jonn]

I do, but I use the external hard drive with the USB ports built into my laptop, not the hub for those, although I have tried both ways in the past.

How many USB ports do you have on your laptop?
More than two?

 

[blitzkrieg]

How many USB ports do you have on your laptop?
More than two?

More than two, yes.

 

[Judge]

I am using the external drive for archiving purposes, primarily.

Primarily? So you do use that drive to run some actual programs? (Even a single application might be problematic.)

Conversely, I'd think exclusively archiving data on an external drive shouldn't matter.

However any program that interacts with Windows if on that drive may corrupt data. If you're running any Windows applications on that drive, the prudent thing to do would be to format it in NTFS as a security/safety precaution.

A very different consideration from a USB flash drive or SD card.